In fact, Byron hadn’t been surprised at all that he might be attacked by a Second Order Dancing Girl of the Hall Sequence from the very beginning. Before undertaking this mission, he had spent the whole month of traveling repeatedly studying the intelligence on his opponent and conducting risk assessments.
The Newman Family had been here several times already. They hadn’t uncovered the secret of the Spices, but they had collected quite a bit of general information about the town’s residents.
The old Priest stationed in the church and the young Dancer who lingered in the tavern for long periods were both suspected to be Second Order Transcendents in the intelligence reports. It was mainly they who dealt with outsiders, too.
The only thing missing in the intelligence was that unremarkable, extremely deceptive Famine Hunter.
The most fundamental principle of the Ladder of Glory is professionalism. A person’s Extraordinary profession is their actual job within the social system and a part of the normal functioning of the human world. For an Extraordinary profession to advance, one must adhere to their professional standards and fulfill their job responsibilities. Just by looking at their day jobs and reasonably inferring the enemy’s Extraordinary profession and core abilities, it’s not difficult. Plus, with my battle power that far surpasses other Transcendents of my rank and ’flexible’ tactics, even deeply penetrating enemy territory, the risk is completely controllable. But then again, I am actually quite looking forward to seeing Violet dance.
Byron waved his hand towards the corpse on the ground.
Shadows danced at his feet, and with two distinct barks, a wisp of Charlotte the Dancer’s spirituality was instantly drawn out and joined Byron’s Mad Hunt Legion behind him. She became the second Second Order Transcendent, after the Royal Hound Vincent, to join after a long absence. She was also the first female Transcendent.
After becoming an Undead Servant, the young girl’s appearance remained vibrant and alive, but she no longer had any consciousness of her own. Following her instinct, she saluted Byron, her master, and then suddenly rushed into his body, the Spiritual Body possessing him!
All her deeply held secrets also flooded into Byron’s mind with the torrent of memories.
"The Crystal Skull unearthed during the construction of the church possesses miraculous powers—as long as Blood Sacrifices continue, it can ensure a bountiful Harvest of crops on this land...
The Priest who leads everyone to wealth and riches is in fact a Sun Crown Priest who is extremely devout to the creator...
The one who truly holds the core technology of the synthetic fragrance isn’t the two who stand in front, but a Famine Hunter..."
With the candid cooperation of the Dancer, one of the three key figures, the core secrets of Tayman Brak Island immediately lifted their skirts high for Byron. The location of the island’s Spice and Gold storages, and even the method to open the chamber within the church and deactivate its protective arrays, became crystal clear.
Although the alarm bells were still ringing in the night sky, the smile on Byron’s face grew wider.
It seems I’ve really struck gold this time. Besides this windfall, my chance to advance to Second Order Storm Knight is tonight!
He was just about to activate the Holy Grail of Blood to collect Charlotte’s corpse as well when he noticed Gus, who had been completely fooled and had only just regained his senses, crouching by the disheveled corpse of the Dancer, busy with something.
"Gus, what’s the rush? After my ritual is over, we can collect the spoils just as well..."
Before he could finish, he took a closer look.
Well, I’ll be! I thought this miser was looting the corpse for me, but who would have thought he was literally... groping the corpse?!
And all the while, he was muttering to himself, "What a waste, it’s just too wasteful to kill her off just like that. Beautiful girls are a resource even rarer than Gold, especially one who is a top-tier Second Order Dancer. Look at these hands like orchids, this waist like a willow, these strong and round thighs... Even now, my mind can’t help but pop up with one bold idea after another! Captain, can you understand me?"
Byron couldn’t bear to listen to his increasingly outrageous talk. He promptly let fly a kick to Gus’s butt, punting the pervert through the air.
Although Gus might not have heard the proverb, "after three years of service, even a sow can look like a beauty," just by observing real-life examples around him—on a pirate ship, where not even sheep were safe from the pirates’ lust—one could imagine just how debased these men were.
Gus got up, rubbing his butt, and looked at the spot where Charlotte the Dancer had melted away into a pool of blood with immense regret, murmuring, "This month you had Miss ’Flower of the North’ keeping you company, all smiles and laughs. A well-fed man like you doesn’t know the hunger of us starving wretches."
Even with mental cultivation far superior to ordinary people, Gus’s eyes were full of painful indignation at his captain squandering such a treasure.
Byron, having finished the cleanup, reactivated the psychological disguise technique and turned around, transformed into... the spitting image of Charlotte.
He bent down and picked up a Parrot Conch from the ground, a low-grade Miracle that allowed for short-range communication. The Famine Hunter, after receiving the prompt from the Crystal Skull, had used this Miracle to inform the sleeping Charlotte, sending her to her death.
Byron gave the wide-eyed man no chance to speak again and directly commanded him, "Gus, now we’ll split up. I need to get my hands on the most valuable things on the island before they find out the Dancer’s Life Gem has shattered."
Perhaps it was a side effect of blood sacrificing the Holy Relic, but ever since the Blood Sacrifices began, no child had been born on this island. None of its 115 inhabitants were innocent enough to be worth redeeming.
"Go about your tasks."
Byron himself might not have been a particularly good person. But as a member of the order faction, he would at least only target his enemies, and they had to be of fighting age, unlike the pioneers on this island, who would indiscriminately attack anyone.
He paused, then continued, "Also, Gus, although you look utterly ordinary, as long as you have money and strength, even if it’s your first time going to a place like the Red Theater, you just need to pose and shout, ’Bring me a new batch!’ Others will subconsciously think you’re an old hand at flirting, overlooking the fact that you are actually... inexperienced."
Wielding the Sailing Logbook, which allowed him to read anyone’s true history at any time, Byron’s words always cut straight to the heart.
Gus’s face turned red. He reached out his hand, trying to make a final argument, attempting to salvage his last shred of dignity.
But "Charlotte" had already vanished into the night.
Byron hadn’t gone far when he encountered a group of pioneers armed with torches, muskets, swords, and heavy crossbows. It was evident that these people were not lacking in money; the equipment in their hands would be considered valuable even in the Old Continent. In the Banta’an Archipelago, thousands of miles away, marking up the original price by two or three times was not a problem.
From the memories of the Dancer, he knew that these men were "militiamen" actively searching for the invaders in designated areas.
Imagine, if in your home country, you had a happy family, a respectable job, and harmonious relatives and friends, would you possibly leave all that behind to head to a new world thousands of miles away? Most pioneers of this period were originally criminals, bankrupts, or slaves unable to survive... Men and women alike were conscripted!
Many may be extremely devout, but the so-called "good people" amongst the believers might not be what most people imagine. The object of their gratitude would never be their true benefactor.
"Miss Charlotte, have you caught the intruder?"
Byron feigned a shake of his head. "No, when I arrived here, I only saw those Fertile Attendants burning fiercely, not a single person in sight. This enemy seems a bit unusual since they could avoid the lighthouse’s early warning. But since the intruders are after our Spices, I’m afraid they’re laying a smokescreen, and their actual target is our Holy Relic. You continue the search, and I’ll go back to guard the Crystal Skull."
The militiamen didn’t question him and quickly dispersed into the woods in groups.
Byron seized the opportunity to rush to the church at full speed. Although the Sacred Relics possessed magical powers, they were not indestructible; if their material carriers were lost, the profound history they held would become useless. If it came to a fight later, it would be a great loss to damage the treasure.
Plus, the people on the island were wealthy, and Charlotte along with the other two Transcendents had naturally purchased their own Life Gems. He had just confirmed the positions of the other two through the Parrot Conch; one was at the lighthouse trying to find the problem, while the other was at the port of the small town, trying to cut off the outsiders’ escape route.
I need to act before the other two Second Order Transcendents realize what’s happening and use the time difference. No need to snatch anything else, just grabbing the Crystal Skull and holding disposal rights for three minutes will allow me to complete my Promotion Ceremony smoothly.
Along the way, he encountered several more patrols of militiamen, with each luxurious squad equipped with at least one Transcendent. If Charlotte hadn’t held such a high position on the island, it really wouldn’t have been so easy to bluff his way through.
In the church, the secret passage behind the Silver Cross was opened, and Byron rushed in. The recognition authority of the array was easily breached by the soul of the Dancer residing within Byron.
He immediately saw, in the not-too-large secret room, that sinister skull with its eyes emitting red light.
Getting within a three-meter range, the Echoes of History immediately read the surface information on the skull:
"[Cursed Object·Crystal Skull No. 3 of the Thirteen].
A relic of the Taya civilization, there were thirteen in total. Due to the long Blood Sacrifice spanning thousands of years, the knowledge contained in the brains of countless sacrifices had been gathered, giving birth to thirteen distinct magical powers. Each symbolized one of the thirteen types of knowledge vital for the Taya People’s survival, as well as the thirteen Nature Spirits (Gods) personified in the Taya divine pantheon: Heavenly God Itzamna, Rain God Chac, Corn God Yum Kax, Sun God Kinich Ahau...
Before the Castilian colonizers arrived, the various city-states of the Taya Empire had already started collapsing, declining, and fragmenting. The thirteen Sacred Artifacts were also scattered and lost. One of them ended up on this small island not far from the Taya Empire. It symbolized the Corn God Yum Kax, who holds the third rank in the divine pantheon, with a knowledge domain in agriculture, and Authority over: Life, prosperity, and fertility."
And just as Byron finished reading the surface information, the skull spoke once more. Its voice, a departure from its earlier emotionless tone, now seemed somewhat hurried, "Foreigner, I sense in your brain many pieces of advanced agricultural knowledge that I have never known. That seems to belong to an agricultural civilization that has reached its peak. Can I eat your brain? Can I? Can I?"